Preview: Match 50 – CSK v SRH

Can SRH register their first ever win against CSK?

What

The Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad will compete for two points in Match 50 of Pepsi IPL 2014.

CSK have already confirmed their berth in the Playoffs. In recent times, the team has suffered a couple of hiccups, losing to Royal Challengers Bangalore and most recently to the Kolkata Knight Riders. The team will want to get back to its winning ways quickly, for they will be keen finish the league season among the top two teams and head to the Playoffs with some winning momentum.

Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore in their previous outing to stay in the race for the Playoffs. They not only need a victory to remain in the race, but also need to win big to improve their net run-rate, which is the worst amongst all the teams still in contention for the Playoffs.

When

Thursday, May 22, 2014, 8 pm IST

Where

JSCA International Cricket Stadium, Ranchi

The Protagonists

With Brendon McCullum heading back home to be with his wife for their child’s birth, the team will need the other two in-form players – Dwayne Smith and Suresh Raina – to step up. Smith is CSK’s top run-getter, while Raina – who has had few opportunities to stamp his authority – will be confident after scoring half-centuries in his last two innings. On the basis of what one saw in the previous match, in Ranchi, CSK’s spinners – R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Samuel Badree – will be expected to once again exploit the conditions in play.

Sunrisers Hyderabad’s decision to promote the in-form David Warner to open the innings came off in their previous match. They will, in all likelihood, stick to the same hoping pair and hope Shikhar Dhawan and Warner can repeat their performances. Naman Ojha and Aaron Finch hold the key in the middle order, given their ability to play the big shots regularly. On the bowling front, SRH need Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Dale Steyn to cause some damage early on and hope the spinners can strangle the CSK batsmen.

Notes from previous match

Chennai Super Kings v Kolkata Knight Riders: Chennai Super Kings will need a huge improvement in their performance in the powerplay overs; their batsmen played out 26 dot-balls in the initial six over of their innings. The other major let down was the catching; usually a very good fielding side, CSK dropped two crucial catches early on in KKR’s run-chase; R Ashwin dropped Robin Uthappa on four and Suresh Raina grassed a chance when Uthappa was on 24.

Sunrisers Hyderabad v Royal Challengers Bangalore: SRH will be happy with their all-round performance in the match, especially given they emerged victorious. SRH could use their bowling resources better; the two overs bowled by Venugopal Rao and Darren Sammy cost the team 26 runs. Positives from the match include runs from Shikhar Dhawan and David Warner at the top and the 100-run partnership between them.

Previous Meetings

The Chennai Super Kings have a 100 percent record from their three matches against Sunrisers Hyderabad. In the most recent meeting between these two teams in Sharjah, CSK restricted SRH to 145/5 and chased down the runs in the final over, with skipper MS Dhoni sealing the chase with a boundary off Amit Mishra.

Trivia

Chennai Super Kings have lost the fewest wickets this season; in the 12 matches they’ve played so far, they’ve lost only 55 wickets.

What Next

Chennai Super Kings will head to Bengaluru to play their final league fixture against the Royal Challengers Bangalore on May 24. Sunrisers Hyderabad also take the field on the same day against the Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Open Questions

Who is the better T20 bowler?

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